People who have a minority viewpoint on a controversial topic are more likely to “self-silence” themselves in conversation – and that may lead them to behave against their own beliefs, a new study found.

Group arts interventions, such as painting, dance, or music, significantly reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety in older adults, offering a powerful alternative to traditional treatments.

The benefits are universal, with consistent results across different art forms, intervention types, and countries. Group arts interventions were particularly beneficial for care home residents relative to older adults who lived in the community.

The findings support the inclusion of group arts interventions in social prescribing initiatives and healthcare guidelines, providing an accessible, cost-effective, and enjoyable way to improve mental well-being in later life.

Experts see peer recognition as important to student success in physics, and a new study gives college-level physics instructors insight into how students perceive the message from their classmates that “you’re good at physics.” Even when women receive similar amounts of recognition from peers as men for excelling in physics classes, they perceive significantly less peer recognition, the researchers found.